Updated on 24/06/2024
Labor and social law is characterized by an almost unmanageable number of legal regulations. The OGBL helps you keep track of this labyrinth and explains the main legal provisions here.
If you can’t find here what you’re looking for, please either run a detailed search, check the FAQ or contact us.
A collective bargaining agreement (CBA) regulates the rights and obligations of the contracting parties, the employer or the employers’ association on the one hand and the trade union on the other, on behalf of the employees.
There are 3 types of collective agreements in Luxembourg:
A CBA regulates salaries, salary increases, working hours and other working conditions for employees in a branch or company. With the exception of the social minimum wage, salaries are not prescribed by law and therefore the level of wages, career development, etc. can only be improved by a CBA.
Collective agreements improve the legal minimum standards (salaries, leave, working hours, breaks, etc.) and also have a protective function. They guarantee a decent standard of living and working conditions. A CBA also regulates the internal continuing vocational training in the company or at the level of a branch, equality between women and men, etc.
According to the Labor Code, Title VI – Collective Labor Relations Chapter I – Collective Bargaining Agreements and Chapter II. – Negotiating a Collective Bargaining Agreement, a CBA can only be negotiated by a trade union recognized as a general national representative – the largest and most important is the OGBL. A trade union that is representative of a particular sector can also negotiate at branch level.
A collective agreement has a minimum duration of 6 months and a maximum duration of 3 years.
The right to define the rules of working relationship independently of the state is called tariff autonomy.
The OGBL negotiates more than 200 collective agreements. Approximately 50% of all employees in Luxembourg benefit from the advantages of a CBA. If you want to find out more about the CBA in your company or sector of activity, please contact the relevant professional syndicate.
The cost-of-living benefit (allocation de vie chère – AVC) allows low-income households to better cope with rising prices for consumer goods. The amount depends on the composition of the household. Household income must not exceed the thresholds below. The benefit is free of taxes and social security contributions.
The AVC is paid upon application by the National Solidarity Fund, subject to certain conditions. The form is available here or through www.myguichet.lu.
Each form must be completed in full, accompanied by a bank customer ID, signed by all applicants of legal age or their legal representatives, and submitted before 31/10/2023.
Persons who have already received a cost-of-living benefit will receive a pre-filled form from the National Solidarity Fund (Fonds nationale de solidarité – FNS) at the end of the year in question.
An energy allowance has been introduced for low-income households. This allowance varies between a minimum of €200 and €400 depending on the income and composition of the household. The maximum income limits for eligibility correspond to those of the cost-of-living benefit plus 25% (see table below).
The energy allowance is a temporary measure, limited to the years 2022, 2023 and 2024. The application for the energy allowance must be submitted no later than October 31, 2023. After this deadline, the application will be rejected. The form is available here or via www.myguichet.lu.
The energy allowance will be paid along with the AVC.
Individuals who have submitted an application to receive the AVC do not need to submit a second application.
Limits on gross monthly household income
Note that applicants with income above the eligibility limit may receive a reduced AVC/energy allowance. The amount of this allowance is the difference between the AVC/energy allowance amounts an applicant in a similar situation would normally receive and the part of the annual income that exceeds the threshold.
Dependency insurance is a compulsory insurance based on the same principle as health insurance. Coverage includes the insured person him-/herself and his/her family members. The amount of the contribution is 1.4% of the insured person’s total gross income, reduced by a quarter of the social minimum wage and deducted from net income.
Cross-border workers are also entitled to dependency insurance benefits in accordance with the terms and conditions of the bilateral agreements.
The permanent employment contract may be terminated by registered letter, subject to the following notice periods:
The notice period begins on the 15th of the current month, if the dismissal was notified before this date, and it begins on the 1st of the following month, if the dismissal was notified after the 14th of the current month.
The employer can exempt the employee from working during the notice period. This must be notified in the termination letter or by a separate letter.
The employee may request by registered letter, within one month of notification of the dismissal, the reasons for his/her dismissal. The employer is then required to state the reasons within one month with precision and by registered letter. In the absence of written reasons within one month, the dismissal is considered unfair. The action for compensation for unfair dismissal must be brought within three months.
In addition, the law recognizes that the person dismissed with notice has the right to the following severance payments:
When a company employs less than 20 employees, the employer can opt either for the payment of severance pay or for an extension of the notice period. In this case, he/she must indicate his/her choice in the dismissal letter.
Collective bargaining agreements may provide for different notice periods and severance payments; these must in any case be more favorable than the law.
Please contact the OGBL professional union responsible for your company or sector for more information.
You’ll find more information in our brochure I lost my job, what can I do?
There are fixed-term and permanent employment contracts as well as employment contracts for pupils and students. They can be on a full-time (40 hours/week) or part-time basis.
Trial periods can be set within the framework of the employment contracts. These can last between 2 weeks and 12 months. The duration of the trial period must be fixed in writing. It cannot be renewed for successive contracts with the same employer.
For part-time contracts, the weekly working hours and the type of work must be precisely defined in the contract.
The OGBL also demands the introduction of a legal basis allowing employees to choose guaranteed options for part-time work. This right should be combined with a right to return to full-time work at the end of the period. At present, this is only possible on the basis of a joint written agreement between the employer and the person concerned and therefore depends on the goodwill of the employer.
Fixed-term employment contracts have a maximum duration of two years and can only be extended twice during this period and the extension must already be provided for in the basic contract. However, there are legal exemptions for certain sectors and occupational groups.
Full details can be found in the CSL brochure in French or in German.
Students and pupils will find everything they need to know in the OGBL brochure in English, and more details about apprenticeship in the CSL brochure in French or in Luxembourgish (page 37).
All possible contracts for teenagers and young employees can be found in the CSL publication in German or in French.
There are also temporary work contracts. Temporary workers receive an employment contract, the mandatory information of which is based on the fixed-term employment contract. In addition, the contract must include the obligatory information from the so-called secondment contract with the user company (for replacements, the name of the absent person, the duration of the mission, the particulars of the position to be filled, the required professional qualification, the place of work, the normal working hours, the amount of the salary, the reason for the mission). If the contract is concluded for a fixed term (max. 12 months, except for seasonal employment contracts or for highly specialized persons), the expiry date must be fixed. If not, the minimum duration for which it was concluded must be fixed. The duration of the trial period may, where appropriate, be between 3 and 8 days. Only one trial period is possible per temporary work contract. The contract must also include an extension clause and an indication that the user company can hire the temporary worker after the mission.
If the user company has signed a collective agreement, its provisions also apply to temporary workers.
If a temporary work contract is concluded orally or if the contract does not specify that it was concluded for a fixed term, it is automatically converted into a permanent employment contract.
The OGBL brochure for temporary workers, available in German, French and Portuguese explains all the details.
The energy allowance will be paid along with the cost-of-living benefit (allocation de vie chère – AVC).
The AVC allows low-income households to better cope with rising prices for consumer goods. The amount depends on the composition of the household. Household income must not exceed the thresholds below. The benefit is free of taxes and social security contributions.
As far as the achievement of equal rights and opportunities between women and men in the world of work is concerned, it is far from over. Problems such as the gender pay gap, sectoral and occupational segregation (exclusion of women from some parts of the labor market and men from others), few women in management positions, high rate of part-time employment for women because of the difficulty of reconciling family and work, a higher proportion of women in long-term unemployment and last but not least the risk of poverty remain, despite the fact that the employment rate for women has increased. And, Luxembourg still remains below the European average for the female employment rate.
The principle of equal treatment between women and men with regard to access to employment and employment itself is enshrined in the Labor Code.
The law prohibits direct and indirect discrimination on the basis of gender.
Direct discrimination exists if a person is, has been, or would be treated less favorably than another person in a comparable situation because of his or her sex.
Indirect discrimination occurs when regulations, criteria or methods that appear to be neutral put people at a particular disadvantage on the basis of their sex compared to other people.
The principle of equal treatment relates to conditions of access to employment, including selection criteria and recruitment conditions, at all hierarchical levels and in relation to promotion, access to vocational guidance, vocational training, continuing vocational training and retraining, including practical work experience, working and dismissal conditions, remuneration and membership of a trade union and participation in trade union work, including the use of trade union benefits.
Wage discrimination on the basis of sex is prohibited by law. Women and men must receive equal pay for equal work or work of equal value. The law includes by salary, remuneration, income the total remuneration of the employee, i.e., the basic salary as well as supplements, allowances, profit-sharing, discounts, bonuses, free parking spaces, housing, etc.
Since equality delegates and staff delegations must and can become active in the field of equal treatment, we present below some instruments and state aids that should be proposed to the employer.
The Ministry for Equality between Women and Men provides companies with the Logib-Lux software, which enables user companies to determine their current wage structure and the causes of possible wage differentials. The instrument is mainly intended for companies with more than 50 employees. A guide on equal pay supports companies with fewer employees in their efforts to achieve equal pay.
An employer who employs a person of the underrepresented sex can receive subsidies if applicable. Within the framework of an employment initiation contract – CIE, the employment fund reimburses the employer 65% of the basic allowance if a position is filled by a member of the under-represented sex in the activity or profession concerned, as well as the employer’s full share of social security contributions.
The under-represented sex is defined as the sex that is under-represented if an activity or profession is carried out at the national level by less than 40% of people of that sex.
The Positive Actions program of the Ministry of Equality between Women and Men supports companies in their voluntary efforts to achieve equality between women and men at work. The action program is based on three priority themes:
Equal treatment (recruitment, training and qualification, remuneration, corporate culture, harassment), decision-making (professional training and promotion, equal participation in decision-making), reconciliation of professional and private life (work organization, professional reintegration, reconciliation of a managerial function and private life).
The company submits its project to the Ministry and, if approved, an agreement is signed. The State’s contribution takes the form of a subsidy. This subsidy varies according to the total cost of the positive measures implemented in the company. Before it can be implemented, the employer must submit the positive action to the equality delegate for an opinion.
Family benefits were reformed on August 1, 2016. Only at the level of family allowance itself, there is a difference between children for whom allowances were received before August 1, 2016 and those for which the right to the allowance only started from August 1, 2016.
The children’s bonus has been abolished, while it has been integrated into the various amounts. The family group has also been abolished, so that the same amount is due for each child regardless of the number of children.
As of January 1, 2022 (retroactive to October 1, 2021), the family allowances are again adjusted to the price development (index). However, this only applies to the family allowance itself, not to the other allowances. It should be noted that the family allowance was not affected by the index manipulation and that its amount was increased by 2.5% on 1 July 2022, while the indexation of wages and pensions was postponed to April 1, 2023. With the end of the index manipulation decided by the tripartite, the adjustments of the family allowances will be made at the same time as those of the salaries and pensions, with the obvious exception of the postponed adjustment to April 1, 2023.
The birth allowance consists of three tranches at € 580.03 each:
These two allowances are reserved for the mother, linked to pregnancy and therefore paid to the mother only once each, even in the event of multiple births.
For the postnatal allowance, the child must be subjected until the age of 2 years to 6 medical examinations carried out by either a specialist in pediatrics or in internal medicine, or by a general practitioner.
In families with at least 2 children for which family allowances were paid in July 2016, the total amount including the child bonus has been divided by the number of children in order to obtain a single amount per child. This amount will be preserved until the end of the right to family allowance. The Children’s Future Fund (Caisse pour l’Avenir des Enfants – CAE) has communicated these amounts in writing to the families concerned.
Single children, as well as those for whom the right to the allowance is only acquired from August 1, 2016, are entitled to a monthly family allowance of 292,54 € (ind. 921,40).
Cross-border workers are only entitled, if applicable, to a differential allowance.
The family allowance is granted up to the age of 18 and can be extended, under certain conditions, up to the age of 25.
Age increase
The family allowance is increased by 22,11 € (ind. 921,40) for children over 6 years of age and by 55,19 € (ind. 921,40) for children over 12 years of age.
The back-to-school allowance is paid once a year, in August. It is set at 115 € for a child over the age of 6 and 235 € for a child over the age of 12.
This allowance is intended for children suffering from one or more conditions resulting in a permanent deficiency or loss of at least 50 % of their physical or mental capacity compared to a child of the same age without disability. It is set at 200 € and can be paid, like the family allowance, up to the age of 25.
If you are ill and therefore unable to work, you must inform your employer or the employer’s representative of your inability to work on the first day of your absence. You can do this yourself or you can inform him through a third party. The information can be given either in writing, by e-mail, fax or SMS, or verbally, also by telephone.
At the latest on the third calendar day of your absence, the employer must have a medical certificate confirming your incapacity for work and its foreseeable duration.
If you are not sure whether the certificate can be sent by post within the required period because you do not live in Luxembourg or you are on vacation, you can also choose a different method of sending, e.g. scan or photograph and then by email or SMS, because in the event of a dispute, the employee must prove that the relevant legal provisions have been complied with.
For detailed information on this subject, consult the OGBL brochure I’m ill, what should I do? Incapacity to work due to illness or accident.
The income for social inclusion (Revenu d’inclusion sociale – REVIS), also called guaranteed minimum income, is a lower income limit and has been adjusted as of January 1, 2019.
The new REVIS has two components. On the one hand, the inclusion allowance, which is intended to make up the difference between the maximum amounts defined by law and the sum of the resources available to the domestic community. On the other hand, the activation allowance is intended to support a person participating in an activation measure.
The applicant must meet the following conditions: be ready to exhaust all possibilities to improve his or her situation.
A person under the age of 25 can benefit from the REVIS if:
Applicants from outside the EU must prove effective residence in Luxembourg for 5 years within the last 20 years.
Applicants from an EU country, who are newly arrived in the country, are not entitled to the REVIS during the first 3 months of their stay in Luxembourg.
Please note: cannot benefit from the REVIS the person:
Inclusion allowance amounts
The application must be submitted by form to the FNS (National Solidarity Fund).
A person who meets all of the following conditions is eligible for the severely disabled income:
The amount of income for severely disabled persons corresponds to 1.759,88 € (ind. 921,40) for an adult and is also managed by the National Solidarity Fund (FNS).
In addition to the annual recreational leave, there are numerous statutory special leaves that enable employees to better reconcile their professional, family and personal obligations (maternity leave, leave for family reasons, accompanying leave, etc.), but also leaves or conditions that go beyond the legal provisions and have been negotiated within the framework of collective agreements.
The right to recreational leave begins after a period of 3 months of uninterrupted work with the same employer. All employees, regardless of their age, are entitled to a statutory annual recreational leave of 26 working days, the week being counted at the rate of 5 working days.
All persons recognized as disabled workers by the Disabled Workers Service are entitled to an additional 6 working days’ leave.
The leave is in principle fixed according to the wishes of the employee. The collective leave must be fixed by mutual agreement between the employer and the staff delegation during the first quarter of the year in question.
Leave not yet taken at the end of the year may be postponed under certain conditions. The number of days off can be substantially increased by collective bargaining agreements.
Please contact the OGBL professional syndicate responsible for your company or sector to find out more.
By the way, the OGBL has also been campaigning for the 6th legal week of leave at the national level for a long time. For OGBL, a first step towards a reduction in working hours is the generalization of the 6th paid leave week, which is why we welcomed the additional day of leave introduced in 2019. The same applies to the number of public holidays.
The law of August 15, 2023 introduces the right of the employee to be absent for reasons of force majeure without having to resort to his or her recreational leave. This extraordinary leave is limited to one day in a twelve-month employment period and can be taken for reasons of force majeure related to urgent family reasons in the event of illness or accident of a family member making the immediate presence of the employee indispensable. The employee must prove the urgent family reason for which the leave is requested by providing the employer with a medical certificate.
Employees are legally entitled to extraordinary leave for personal reasons of:
In many cases, both recreational and extraordinary leave have been increased by collective bargaining agreements.
Please note: Extraordinary leave must be taken at the time of the event.
Upon the birth of a child or the adoption of a child under the age of 16, the father is entitled to 10 days of paternity leave.
The employer must be informed in writing with two months’ notice of the expected dates on which the employee wishes to take the leave. A copy of the medical certificate of the expected date of childbirth or proof of the expected date of reception of the child in case of adoption must be attached.
The leave must be taken within two months of the birth or reception of the child. It may be split if the employer agrees. In principle, leave is determined in accordance with the employee’s wishes, unless the needs of the company conflict with this. If the employee and the employer cannot agree, the leave must be taken in one time and immediately after the birth or reception of the child.
Payment for paternity leave shall be calculated in the same mode as for recreational leave.
Under the law of July 29, 2023, leave for the birth or fostering of an adopted child is now extended to any person recognized as an equivalent second parent under the applicable national legislation, as well as to self-employed persons. This means that same-sex couples can now also benefit from the ten days of leave.
The days of leave are defined by the same law as eighty hours, which can be split, with provision for pro rata in the case of part-time work.
The law prohibits the employment of a pregnant woman or a woman who has recently given birth for eight weeks before and twelve weeks after childbirth. During this period, the National Health Insurance Fund grants maternity leave at the same payment rate as the sick leave benefit on condition that the woman concerned has worked for at least six months in the year preceding the start of the maternity leave.
Conditions
The applicant must:
The limited age of the child for which the second parental leave is requested is fixed at 6 years. If adopted, the age limit is 12 years.
Durations
If all the conditions are met, the employer is obliged to grant full-time parental leave of 6 months, respectively 12 months in the event of multiple births. Part-time or split parental leave is subject to the agreement of the employer and to be defined in a parental leave plan which must be submitted, with the application, to the Children’s Future Fund (CAE).
Part-time or split parental leave is not possible for applicant parents with a total working time of between 10 and 20 hours per week or with an apprenticeship contract.
Part-time parental leave consists of a 50% reduction in working hours and no longer a reduction of 20 hours. The split can be one day a week for 20 months or 4 separate months for a period of 20 months.
Compensation
The compensation is provided by a replacement income, which is subject to social and tax charges, calculated in relation to the contributory income for the 12 months preceding the beginning of parental leave. The lower limit corresponds to the minimum social wage and the upper limit corresponds to 5/3 of the minimum social wage. These amounts correspond to full-time employment contracts and are prorated in the case of part-time employment contracts.
More details can be found in the CSL brochure.
Each employee with a dependent child requiring in the event of serious illness, accident or other compelling health reason the presence of one of his/her parents, can claim leave for family reasons.
A child born within or outside a marriage and an adopted child who requires the physical presence of one of the parents is considered a dependent child.
It is possible to extend the duration with the assent of the Social Security Medical Control.
Leave for family reasons amounts to:
These numbers of days are doubled if the child in question is beneficiary of the additional special allowance.
The days of leave for family reasons taken before 01/01/2018 are deducted from the remaining right of the age group concerned.
The employer must be informed of the absence, the same day by the beneficiary or by an intermediary, either orally or in writing. A medical certificate attesting the duration of the leave beneficiary’s absence must be given to the employer.
All employees are entitled to a leave of five working days per case and per year to accompany a parent in the first degree in an ascending or descending direct line (mother, father, daughter or son) or in the second degree in a collateral line (sister, brother), spouse or partner who suffers from a serious terminal illness.
This leave can be split. In agreement with the employer, it can be taken part-time. The accompanying leave ends on the date of death of the person at the end of life.
The absence relating thereto must be attested by medical certificate and the beneficiary is obliged to inform her/his/her employer at the latest on the first day of her/his absence.
This leave was introduced by the law of August 15, 2023, and provides for five days of leave during a twelve-month employment period to provide personal care or assistance to a family member or a person living in the same household as the employee who requires substantial care or assistance for serious medical reasons that reduce his or her capacity and autonomy, rendering the family member or the aforementioned person incapable of compensating for or coping autonomously with physical, cognitive or psychological impairments or disabilities, or psychological impairments or health-related constraints or needs, and which is certified by a doctor.
Besides the leaves listed above, the Labor Code also provides for other special leaves, such as training leave, linguistic leave …
Please contact the OGBL Information, Advice and Assistance Service for further information.
There are 11 legal holidays in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg:
Legal public holidays count as part of your weekly working time, and entitle you to a wage corresponding to the number of hours you would normally have worked on that day.
If you work on a public holiday that falls on a working day (any day of the week from Monday to Saturday; Sunday is a non-working day), you are entitled to a total remuneration of 300%:
There is no provision in the law for compensatory leave for a legal public holiday that falls on a working day. However, if you work on a legal public holiday falling on a weekday (other than Sunday) on which you would not have worked under the terms of your work contract, you are entitled to a compensatory day off. In this case, total remuneration is 200% plus one compensatory day off, which must be granted within 3 months.
If you work on a public holiday that falls on a Sunday, you are entitled to:
If the hours worked on Sunday are overtime, you are of course also entitled to a supplement of 40% or to compensatory rest (1.5 hours per hour of overtime worked).
Legislation on the protection pregnant women, women who have recently given birth or are breastfeeding, includes a number of provisions such as:
In addition, breastfeeding mothers are entitled to a breastfeeding break of either two 45-minute breaks or 90 minutes (e.g., if the usual work break is less than one hour) at the beginning and/or end of their workday after they resume work.
If it is technically or objectively impossible for the employer to temporarily adjust the working conditions or working hours of a pregnant or breastfeeding woman who has to perform dangerous work, as defined by law, she must be assigned to another job with her salary maintained.
If a new assignment is not possible, the pregnant or breastfeeding woman shall be exempted from work.
The assessment of dangerous work and the decisions regarding adaptation, assignment or exemption from work are made on the advice of the competent occupational physician.In addition, breastfeeding mothers are entitled, after resuming work, to a breastfeeding break of either twice 45 minutes or 90 minutes (e.g., if the usual work break is less than one hour) at the beginning and/ or end of their workday.
The legal provisions relating to the minimum social wage apply to all employees without exception. The minimum social wage is set at:
For employees with a professional qualification corresponding to the workpost, the minimum social wage is increased by 20% (3.085,11 € – ind 944.43).
The rates for young employees as well as the minimum wages can be substantially improved through collective bargaining agreements.
In case of adaptation, please refer to our social parameters, which are available in our agencies or can be downloaded here.
The hourly rate of the social minimum wage is calculated by dividing the monthly social minimum wage by 173.
Since March 29, 2023, the Labor Code contains provisions to combat harassment in the workplace, and allows the Labor and Mines Inspectorate (ITM) to impose an administrative fine on the employer. The Grand Ducal regulation of December 15, 2009, which declared the agreement of June 25, 2009, negotiated and signed by the social partners, to be a general obligation, remains in force, and the provisions relating to violence in the workplace must therefore be applied by all Luxembourg-based companies.
Moral harassment
The law specifies the measures to be taken by an employer in the event of moral harassment within the company or in the course of working relations (contact with customers, travel on duty, etc.). If, despite the measures taken by the employer, the moral harassment does not cease, a procedure with the ITM can be launched at the initiative of the victim or, with his or her agreement, of the staff delegation. After hearing the victim, the alleged harasser, any witnesses and the employer or his representative, the ITM will draw up a report within 45 days of receipt of the claim, and, if necessary, order the employer to take the appropriate measures. The law also protects the victim and witnesses from possible reprisals by the employer.
The staff delegation, whose role is defined by law as being primarily to prevent cases of moral harassment within a company, proposes to the employer any preventive action it considers necessary. The staff delegation can accompany and advise the employee concerned.
For further information, contact your staff delegation or the OGBL via contact.ogbl.lu.
Violence
The following aspects must be taken into account in the company’s prevention policy:
Further information can be found in the CSL brochure (in French and in German) on the subject, and the full agreement can be found here in French and in German.
According to the Labor Code, religion, belief, sexual orientation, age, disability, race, ethnicity, being male or female, and gender reassignment are prohibited grounds for discrimination.
The Penal Code supplements this with origin, skin color, health status, morals, trade union activities, and actual or assumed membership or non-membership of a nation.
These grounds of discrimination apply to conditions of access to employment, including selection criteria and conditions of recruitment, at all levels of the hierarchy and for promotion, access to vocational guidance, vocational training, continuing vocational training and retraining, including practical work experience, working conditions and dismissal, remuneration and membership in a trade union, and participation in trade union work, including the use of union benefits.
Employees who believe they have been the victim of direct or indirect discrimination (see Equal treatment of women and men in the workplace) have the right to report it to the employer. A complaint does not result in reprisals, either for the victim or for any witnesses, but the employer is obliged to act.
You can defend yourself by asking for the nullity of any provision or act that violates the principle of equal treatment, by asking for the termination of the employment contract on your own initiative or by filing a complaint with the criminal court.
More details can be found here (French or German). If you are a victim of discrimination in the workplace, please contact our Information, Advice and Support Service immediately.
In principle, the reform of the pension system has not changed the following indications. However, the calculation of pensions has been revised. Until now, the theoretical gross monthly pension amount is shown on the annual statement of membership from the insured person’s 55th birthday. You can also request a simulation (for information purposes) of the pension from the National Pension Fund.
Every insured man and woman with at least 120 months of insurance, including those for an activity in a country with which Luxembourg is bound by a bi- or multilateral instrument of social security, is entitled to the normal old-age pension at the age of 65. If the insured, at the age of 65, does not meet the above-mentioned condition, the contributions actually paid into his account, with the exception of the State’s share, are reimbursed on request, taking into account the adjustment to the index the cost of living.
An insured person is entitled to the early retirement pension
on condition that he or she ceases any professional activity other than insignificant or occasional and if the related income, spread over a full calendar year, does not exceed one third of the social minimum wage per month.
Each person who has not yet reached the age of 65, who has worked for at least 12 months during his or her lifetime, having stopped working for family reasons and being in good health, may subscribe to a voluntary pension insurance. In addition, the current legislation provides for the possibility of buying back of missing pension periods.
The different survivor’s pensions
The persons who may be eligible for a survivor’s pension are as follows:
Conditions for granting survivor’s pensions
As the attribution of the different survivor’s pensions is linked to qualifying conditions and conditions of allocation, please contact, in case of doubt, one of the agencies of the OGBL’s Information, Advice and Assistance Service.
Each insured, having 12 months of insurance to his/her credit during the 3 years preceding the date of disability, can apply for a disability pension. This qualifying condition is not necessary, if the invalidity is the result of a work accident or an occupational disease. The disability pension is granted to the insured as long as the incapacity to work persists. It should be noted that is considered as invalid by law, an insured who, as a result of prolonged illness, infirmity or attrition, has suffered a loss of capacity for work such that he or she is prevented from engaging in his/her last or any other occupation corresponding to his/her strengths and aptitudes.
The insured person is entitled to a minimum pension of 2.112,77 € (ind. 921,40) if he or she can claim 40 years of insurance. If the insured does not reach this threshold, but can justify at least 20 years of insurance, the pension is reduced by one fortieth for each missing year. The surviving spouse is entitled to the same amount, orphans to 576,59 € (ind. 921,40). It should be noted that the legislation also provides for non-cumulation provisions.
The child-raising pension is a benefit allocated to a parent who has dedicated himself or herself to the education of one or more children, if his or her pension does not take into account the periods of education of these children.
Adoptive parents are entitled to the child-raising pension if the child was under four years of age at the time of the adoption. In this case, the child-raising pension is allocated to the person who took care of the child’s education instead of the parents.
If, due to exceptional circumstances, the parents were living abroad at the time of the birth of the child, an exemption from the residency requirement may be granted.
The gross amount of the child-raising pension is 86.54 € per child per month.
The child-raising pension is due from the age of 65 years, if the interested person requests it.
In the event of incapacity for work following an accident at work, the injured employee receives an indemnity from the National Health Fund (CNS) identical to the amount of the sickness benefits. In the event of an accident at work recognized as such, this benefit is paid in the name and on behalf of the Accident Insurance Association (Association d’assurance accidents, AAA). It is limited in all cases to 78 weeks during a reference period of 104 weeks.
A work accident allowance can be claimed in case of temporary total incapacity for work or permanent partial incapacity for work.
If the accident results in the death of the insured person, the surviving dependent persons receive an indemnity and the survivor’s pension.
There are 5 professional chambers in Luxembourg, founded in 1924:
These are institutions under public law whose main mission is to defend the interests of the professional groups they represent (workers and pensioners from the private sector, the State and municipalities, farmers, merchants, artisans). Membership is compulsory and the annual contribution is automatically collected; in the case of employees, from their salary by the employer, who then forwards the contribution to the Chamber.
If laws or Grand-Ducal regulations, that affect one or more of these professional groups, need to be enacted, the government must seek the opinion of the professional chambers concerned. This procedure exists only in Luxembourg and underlines the importance of the chambers.
The professional chambers may also submit unsolicited proposals to the government, which may be forwarded to parliament after examination.
Like the other chambers, the Chamber of Employees (CSL) has above all an advisory role. It issues opinions that affect the interests of employees and pensioners. The content of these opinions is determined by the 60 members of the plenary assembly.
The CSL can also make its own suggestions, for example to amend draft laws.
The election of the CSL also decides on the appointment of employee representatives to the various social security bodies (health insurance – CNS, pension insurance – CNAP, etc.). The CSL plenary assembly appoints too the employees’ assessors to the labor courts and social courts.
Through its economic and socio-political analyses, the CSL supports and consolidates the actions and demands of the trade unions. They offer a scientifically valid alternative to the uniform neo-liberal mush-like statements of employers’ lobby groups, consulting firms and other “experts” and show that a different policy is possible, a policy of social progress in the interest of all employees.
The CSL also analyses the social situation in the country and has, in collaboration with the University of Luxembourg, developed an indicator of the quality of working life that shows how it is developing in the various sectors and thus also provides a basis for measures to improve working conditions.
CSL regularly publishes brochures and newsletters that provide information on empoyees’ rights. The topics are diverse and touch on many areas of labor and social law.
People suffering from stress at work can also obtain free advice from CSL. If you need help or information, you can find details in French or German here.
The CSL is also involved in the organization of vocational training and offers a wide range of training courses for all levels of education. You can find detailed information in French here.
Since the OGBL and the Landesverband hold an absolute majority of the seats in the CSL, 37 out of 60 seats, it significantly influences its decisions and actions.
See more under Social Elections.
Like the other chambers, the Chamber of Civil Servants and Public Employees (CHFEP) has above all an advisory role. It issues opinions on all laws and decrees that affect the interests of civil servants and public employees, whether they are in active service or retired. The content of these opinions is determined by the 27 members of the plenary assembly.
The other missions consist of creating and subsidizing, if necessary, all establishments, institutions, works or services essentially dedicated to the improvement of the social condition of civil servants and public employees, to formulate complaints, to request information and the production of statistical data.
The legal provisions on the employment of young employees apply to all young people up to the age of 18. In principle, they prohibit overtime, night work, work on Sundays and public holidays, piecework and line work.
It also stipulates that school hours are to be considered working hours and that young employees (up to the age of 21) must undergo periodic medical examinations.
If you are an apprentice, then you will find more details in the CSL brochure in French or in German.
If you work more than 6 hours a day, your work schedule must, for health and safety reasons, be interrupted by at least one rest period/break. This break may be paid, as is often the case when collective bargaining agreements are in force, or unpaid. The law nevertheless specifies that the daily work schedule may only be interrupted by one unpaid rest period. This is to avoid excessively long working days
Employees under the age of 18 are entitled to a 30-minute break after 4 hours’ work.
Breast-feeding employees may request two 45-minute breaks per day to feed their child.
In a 24-hour period, everyone is entitled to a minimum rest period of 11 consecutive hours. If, for example, you work late into the evening, you cannot be forced to return to work early the next morning.
You must also have an uninterrupted weekly rest period of 44 hours. As far as possible, Sunday should be included in this rest period. If such a weekly rest period is not respected, you are entitled, upon ITM’s notification, to additional leave. For each full period of 8 weeks, whether successive or not, during which this rest is not granted, you are entitled to one additional day off (maximum 6 days off per year).
According to the labor code, harassment on the basis of sex is discriminatory and prohibited.
Sexual harassment is intentional behavior with sexual suggestion that is degrading and shameful to the victim, used as a means of extortion (e.g. approaches related to the promise of reward and/or threat of consequences), creating an intimidating and hostile environment for the victim.
Sexual harassment may take physical, verbal or non-verbal forms and may originate from the employer, a co-worker, a customer or a supplier.
The employer is required to refrain from sexual harassment and to protect all employees from sexual harassment.
If a victim of sexual harassment wishes to report it, it is sufficient to establish facts that suggest the existence of harassment. But mere accusations or allegations are not enough.
The victim must prove that the act took place, for example by witnesses or by presenting documents. In addition, provided that the employer is not the perpetrator, the victim must also prove that he or she informed the employer and that the employer did not take any action.
Then, the burden of proof is reversed, i.e. the employer must prove that there was no sexual harassment or that he took all necessary measures to stop it.
When you are being sexually harassed, it is important to talk about it and ask for help. If necessary, contact the staff representatives or the OGBL Information, Advice and Assistance Service.
Under no circumstances should the victim be harmed by measures aimed at ending sexual harassment.
Since January 1, 2009, employees in the event of illness are entitled to have their salary maintained by the employer until the end of the month in which the 77th day of incapacity falls during a reference period of 18 successive months. As of the following month, coverage is provided by the National Health Fund (CNS). Coverage is again the responsibility of the employer the month following the month in which the above-mentioned 77-day condition is no longer met. Entitlement to cash sickness benefits, including the above-mentioned salary maintenance, is limited to 78 weeks during a reference period of 104 weeks.
Every person residing in the Grand Duchy can take out insurance on a voluntary basis. In this case, benefits in kind are only granted after a 3-month internship.
Upon termination of employment, health insurance coverage will continue for the current month and the following 3 months, provided the employee has been insured for the previous 6 months. For illnesses under treatment at the time of termination of affiliation, the health insurance can be extended for a further 3 months. If the inability to work is due to an accident at work, the health insurance can be extended by 9 months. These conditions count only for health care benefits. However and under certain conditions, payment of cash benefits may also be continued. In this respect, we recommend that those concerned take advice from our agencies, preferably before the end of the employment relationship. The employee may, within a period of 6 months, take out continued insurance with the National Health Fund (CNS).
Social elections mean that employees and municipal civil servants and employees elect their staff representatives. These elections take place every five years for both types of personnel.
Employees are called to the polls to elect the members of the staff delegation in their company or group of companies.
Municipal civil servants and employees elect the members of the staff delegation in their municipality or municipal syndicate.There are 2 institutions in Luxembourg that represent the interests of employees in Luxembourg:
Pensioners also participate in the election of professional chambers held every 5 years.
Any employer who has employed at least 15 employees in the 12 months preceding the first day of the month in which the elections are announced by the Ministry must have a staff delegation elected. Employees on fixed-term or temporary contracts as well as apprentices are not taken into account in the calculation.
The number of delegates to be elected depends on the size of the company’s workforce.
In companies employing between 15 and 99 employees, the members of the staff delegation are elected according to the relative majority system (majority system). In companies with at least 100 employees, they are elected according to the proportional representation system (proportional system).
All employees have the right to vote in the elections of the staff delegation, provided that they:
To be a candidate, the following conditions must be met:
Employees who have different employers with more than 15 employees can stand for election in the company where they work most hours per week. If you work the same number of hours in all companies, the longest period of service is the criterion considered.
Parents and relatives of the head of the company, up to and including the 4th degree, as well as managers, directors and the head of the company’s personnel department cannot be elected as delegates.
Between the 5 years, a staff delegation must be elected or newly elected if:
Employees must be informed at least one month prior to the elections by display that the elections will take place.
Each municipality and municipal syndicate that employed at least 15 municipal civil servants and employees on January 1 prior to the election must have a staff delegation elected. In determining the total number of staff, consideration shall be given to civil servants in active or provisional service, vacant positions as defined in the remuneration legislation, and municipal employees.
The number of delegates to be elected depends on the number of staff. In municipalities that employ between 15 and 75 municipal civil servants and employees, the members of the staff delegation are elected according to the relative majority system. In municipalities with at least 76 municipal civil servants and employees, they are elected on the basis of proportional representation.
All municipal civil servants and employees are eligible to vote in the elections to the staff delegation, provided that they:
Municipal civil servants and employees who have been temporarily removed from their duties may not vote or be candidates.
Relatives and in-laws up to and including the fourth degree of a member of the Collegium of Mayor and Aldermen may not be elected as delegates.
By-elections may be held between the 5 years.
If you would like to be an OGBL candidate for the next elections, please contact the OGBL/Landesverband Public Service Syndicate.
The Chamber of Employees (Chambre des Salariés – CSL), which is elected every 5 years at the same time as the staff delegations, by anonymous postal ballot, is one of the most important democratically elected institutions in Luxembourg, a true Parliament of Labor.
All employees and pensioners, whatever their nationality and place of residence, are compulsory members of the CSL and therefore have the right to vote.
The members choose 60 representatives and their substitutes from the lists presented by the trade unions in their respective professional groups:
The result of the CSL election also determines the national and sectoral representativeness of the unions.
In the 2024 elections, the OGBL (of which the Landesverband is a member) was able to defend its absolute majority with 37 of 60 seats. OGBL president Nora Back is the chair of the CSL.
If you want to know how the plenary assembly is composed, see all the elected members of the CSL, click here.
Every 5 years, the civil servants and public employees, active and retired, of the State and the communes, are invited to elect 27 members and their substitutes to represent them.
The Chamber of Civil Servants and Public Employees (CHFEP) is divided into 8 categories
The OGBL and the FNCTTFEL-Landesverband, which since July 2020 has been provisionally integrated into the ranks of the OGBL, hold 2 seats since the 2020 elections.
More information on the CHFEP is available here.
In the private sector, there must be a staff delegation in every company with at least 15 employees. This is elected every five years (see Social elections). The OGBL has more than 3,500 staff delegates in companies in Luxembourg.
In the municipal sector, a distinction must be made between the delegations of municipal workers and the delegations of municipal civil servants and employees. Municipal workers are called to the polls together with all workers in the private sector. In municipalities with at least 15 municipal civil servants and employees, their interests are represented by a compulsory staff delegation elected every five years, usually one year before the private sector elections. In municipalities with fewer municipal civil servants and employees, the election of a delegation is optional (see Social Elections).
There is no actual staff delegation for state civil servants and employees, but professional associations may be formed within state administrations, departments, and institutions, authorized by ministerial decree. Such an association acts as a staff representative body and has as its exclusive objective the defense of the professional interests of the remuneration subgroup for which it is representative. The OGBL has in fact signed cooperation agreements with the Association du personnel policier détenteur d’un Diplôme de fin d’Etudes Secondaires de la Police grand-ducale (ADESP), the Association des maîtres d’enseignement Luxembourg (AMELUX), the Association des maîtres d’enseignement Luxembourg (AMELUX) and the Association du personnel de la Police grand-ducale (ADESP), the Association du Personnel des Centres de Compétences et de l’Agence (APCCA), the Association du Personnel de la Police Judiciaire (APPJ) and the Guilde des Controllurs aériens (GLCCA), which aim to cooperate in defending the interests of the employees concerned.
The general mission of staff delegations and representations is to safeguard, defend and promote the professional interests of the staff they represent.
They are the intermediary between personnel and employers, both collectively and for individuals or groups of individuals.
You can find a lot of information on this page. You can also download the OGBL’s FAQ Social Elections brochure and/or The Social Dialogue in Companies brochure from CSL.
If you would like to contact your OGBL staff delegation, please contact the relevant professional syndicate.
In order to carry out the specific tasks, the staff delegation appoints a health and safety delegate from among its members or from among the other employees of the company and an equality delegate from its own ranks (effective members and substitutes).
Safety and health delegates shall be consulted and informed by the employer regarding the assessment of safety and health risks, actions that may have a significant effect on safety and health, first aid, firefighting and evacuation measures, continuous health and safety training, and environmental protection measures if they affect the health or working conditions of employees.
Once a week, the delegate may make a tour of the company’s head office and work sites in the presence of his or her employer or his representative. In the administrative services, this control tour takes place a maximum of 2 times a year.
The comments, findings and observations of the safety and health delegate are recorded in a special register and countersigned by the head of department concerned. The members of the staff delegation and the staff of the ITM can consult it.
If the safety and health delegate makes findings that require immediate action on the part of the ITM, he/she may contact the ITM directly, but must also inform the employer and the staff delegation at the same time.
The safety and health delegate may make suggestions to the employer to better protect employees and eliminate sources of danger.
The task of the equality delegate is obvious, namely to ensure equal treatment of women and men in the company, in terms of access to employment, continuous training, professional promotion, as well as in terms of remuneration and working conditions.
The equality delegate may act alone or in concert with the delegation.
In his/her areas of responsibility, he/she may formulate opinions and suggestions, propose awareness-raising measures, transmit individual and collective complaints related to equal treatment, submit an action plan to promote equal opportunities between women and men, deal with the ITM on all complaints and conclusions, prevent and resolve individual and collective disputes regarding equal treatment that may arise between the employer and staff.
The equality delegate, like the rest of the staff delegation, is also bound by professional secrecy, unless the employees concerned or third parties are also subject to such obligations.
In the CSL brochure – Practical guide for the equality delegate – Equality in companies, that exist in French and German you will find everything that an equality delegate and all members of the staff delegation should know about equal treatment, equal opportunities and non-discrimination.
Right to information
The employer must provide the delegation with the necessary information about the company and its development so that it can properly carry out its tasks.
In companies with more than 150 employees, this information must be provided on a monthly basis or at the request of the staff delegation. In smaller companies, the staff delegation is informed during meetings with the management, which take place 3 times a year.
If the delegation considers that the information provided is insufficient, it can request additional information.
The members of the delegation have the right to contact all employees of the company. After having informed the employer, they can move freely in the company or on the sites to get in touch with the staff.
The staff delegation is also involved in the prevention of moral harassment and violence in the workplace and in continuous training in the company. It is involved in actions in favor of young people and in companies with more than 100 employees in vocational training in the enterprise.
In companies with more than 150 employees, the staff delegation must also be involved in decisions concerning
Therefore, a joint meeting of the representatives of the employer and the delegation must take place at least once every quarter. The number of employer representatives must not exceed the number of staff representatives.
For important decisions in technical, economic and financial matters that may affect the structure of the company or the level of employment, the management must inform and consult the staff delegation in advance (when building, converting or extending production facilities or administrative buildings), modernization or conversion of equipment, work methods or production processes (excluding production secrets), production or sales volume, plans to shut down or transfer the business or part of the business, plans to restrict or extend the business activity, etc. ). The employer may derogate from this principle of prior information and consultation in only a limited way.
The delegation must also be informed of the impact of these measures on working conditions and the working environment.
The delegation receives information once a year and its opinion is sought on current and projected workforce requirements and in particular on continuous training and vocational retraining measures.
The delegation is informed of the economic and financial development of the company at least twice a year. Accordingly, the employer must submit a comprehensive report on the activity, turnover, overall production and operating results, structural development, staff remuneration, etc. The delegation is informed of the company’s financial and economic development at least twice a year.
If the company is a public limited liability company, a non-profit association, a cooperative or a foundation, the management must also submit to the staff delegation the profit and loss account, the annual balance sheet, the auditor’s report and any other documents to be presented to the decision-makers, before the documents are presented to the general meeting of shareholders or the decision-making body.
Time credit
The staff delegation benefits from a time credit in proportion to the number of employees it represents.
In companies with fewer than 150 employees, this is calculated on the basis of 40 hours/week for 500 employees.
In companies with 150 to 249 employees, the calculation is based on 40 hours per week for 250 employees.
In companies with 250 or more employees, a permanent work exemption must be granted to a set number of delegates depending on the size of the company (1 to 4 full-time staff delegates in companies with 250 to 500, 501 to 1,000, 1,001 to 2,000 and 2,001 to 3,500 employees).
In companies with more than 3,500 employees, one additional delegate is appointed for every 1,500 employees. Full-time staff delegates are usually elected by the delegation members.
Where there are more than 1,000 employees, the nationally representative unions represented in the delegation will each also appoint an additional full-time delegate.
In order to be able to carry out her/his duties, the equality delegate has a special time credit, possibly in addition to the time credit as a full member of the staff delegation. This is also proportional to the number of employees to be represented: 4 hours per month for a staff of 15 to 25 persons, 6 for 26 to 50, 8 for 51 to 75 and 10 for 76 to 150. From 150 employees onwards, the equality delegate has 4 hours per week at his/her disposal.
Meetings of the delegation
The staff delegation may meet once a month. Management must be informed at least 5 working days in advance, unless a shorter period has been agreed. Even if the health and safety delegate is not an elected member of the delegation, he/she may attend all meetings in an advisory capacity, the same applies to the equality delegate if he/she is an alternate member of the delegation.
The employer is required to provide the delegation with a room equipped for its meetings.
The delegation must convene a meeting 6 times a year, 3 of which are with the management.
Meeting time is considered working time.
Once a year, the delegation may convene a plenary staff meeting to which the employer or his representative may be invited.
Permanences
In companies with less than 250 employees, the staff delegation may organize permanences during or outside working hours. If the permanences take place during working hours, schedules and organizational arrangements must be discussed with management. Permanences are charged to the delegation’s time credit.
If the company has more than 250 employees, the permanences will be provided by full-time delegates at working hours determined by the delegation and communicated to the employer.
Continued payment of remuneration
The employer shall provide delegates with the time necessary to perform their duties and shall pay for such time in hours worked, regardless of the time credit.
Delegates also have the right to leave their workplace to perform their duties without loss of pay. However, the employer must be notified in advance and the absence must not inhibit the work.
Special protection for staff delegates
Effective and substitute staff delegates are protected against the modification of an essential clause of their employment contract and against dismissal (neither for serious misconduct), from the time of their candidacy (and for 3 months after the election, if they have not been elected), for the duration of their mandate and for 6 months afterwards .
If the employer does not comply with this prohibition, the delegate can ask the president of the labour court to annul the termination or modification of the employment contract.
If the employer invokes serious misconduct, he has the possibility to pronounce the dismissal of the delegate, pending the final decision of the labour court.
Training leave
In order to deepen their economic, social and technical knowledge, staff delegates are entitled to training leave in order to participate, during working hours and without loss of pay, in training offers organized by the trade union or specialized institutions.
The duration of the training leave depends on the number of employees in a company:
Delegates elected for the first time are entitled to an additional 16 hours of training leave during the first year of their mandate.
Alternate delegates are entitled to half the training leave provided for a full member.
The employer must grant the training leave.
Information to staff
Staff delegations can disseminate their communications, reports and positions within the company, on information boards accessible to all or by electronic means.
Union communications may be freely posted by the national or sectoral representative unions represented in the delegation, on a board specially provided for this purpose or distributed at locations specified with the employer. A copy of the communication must be sent to management.
Members of staff delegations shall remain subject to the general statute of municipal civil servants and, if any, to the rules of procedure of the department to which they belong.
The exercise of the mandate as staff delegate shall not affect the rights granted to the civil servants by law.
A delegate shall not receive less compensation than that which he/she would have received if he/she had actually worked during the delegation hours.
The delegation may meet during working hours for a maximum of four hours, as often as the fulfillment of its duties requires, but at least six times a year. It must give 48 hours’ notice to the Collegium of Mayor and Aldermen, unless a shorter notice period has been agreed upon.
The delegates may form special commissions as needed. The special commissions shall meet during office hours with 48 hours’ notice, unless a shorter notice period is agreed upon.
The municipality is obliged to grant the delegates the time necessary for the exercise of their mandate and to remunerate this time as working time. If the number of voters is between 501 and 750, the Collegium of Mayor and Aldermen shall be obliged to free a delegate from any work and to grant him/her a permanent leave of absence from work, maintaining the remuneration as well as all statutory rights, in particular the right to promotion and professional advancement. If the staff strength is between 751 and 1500, 2 delegates shall be released; if the staff strength is over 1500 voters, 3 delegates shall be released. The delegation shall determine the delegates to be freed by an absolute majority of its members. The delegation may decide, by an absolute majority of its members, to convert one or more relieved delegates to a time credit of 40 hours/week per relieved delegate.
If a delegate fails to appear at three consecutive meetings of the staff delegation, he/she may be declared to have resigned and be replaced by the Collegium of Mayor and Aldermen, on the proposal of the staff delegation.
Upon the expiry of his/her mandate, a relieved delegate shall be replaced in his/her former job or in an equivalent job – an agreement between the Collegium of Mayor and Aldermen and the delegation shall determine the necessary measures.
The meetings and deliberations of the staff delegates shall be held in a room made available to them. The costs of heating, cleaning and lighting, as well as the office expenses of the delegation shall be borne by the municipality.
The delegation shall set out the regulations governing its organization and working in internal rules of procedure.
At the request of the staff delegation, which it must submit to the Collegium of Mayor and Aldermen within two months of its establishment, the latter shall decide on the implementation of department delegations as provided for in the general statute of municipal civil servants.
In Luxembourg, telework is not governed by law, but by an interprofessional agreement concluded in 2006 between employers’ representatives (UEL – Union des Entreprises luxembourgeoises) and the nationally representative unions OGBL and LCGB. Subsequently, and due to the commitment of the OGBL on this subject, a new agreement was negotiated on 20 October 2020, declared to be of general obligation by the Grand-Ducal regulation of 22 January 2021. This agreement provides some clarification, although there is still room for improvement in favor of employees. It follows that the OGBL will continue to submit its demands to improve the legal and regulatory provisions.
In our Short Guide for Teleworkers, we try to answer residents’ and crossborder workers’ frequently asked questions about telework regulations in Luxembourg
Unemployment benefit is granted to the involuntarily unemployed domiciled on Luxembourg territory, registered with the Agency for the Development of Employment (ADEM), employed for 26 weeks (182 days) during the 12 months preceding his/her registration and with a working time of at least 16 hours/ week.
Unemployment benefit is in principle 80% of the average gross salary for the 3 months preceding the unemployment. However, it may not exceed the following amounts:
The duration of unemployment benefit is 6 to 12 months depending on the number of months worked in the 12 months prior to registration. It may be extended by a further 6 months for reasons of age, disability (depending on age and degree of disability), or assignment to employment measures, respectively between 9 and 12 months for workers over 50 years of age in the case of social security affiliation over 20 years, but may not exceed a total of 24 months of compensation.
Young people between the ages of 18 and 21 who leave school receive compensation equal to 70% of the minimum social wage. Young people between 16 and 17 years of age leaving school are entitled to an indemnity of 40% of the minimum social wage.
Entitlement to these benefits is available only after 39 weeks of registration as a job seeker and if the said registration is made within one year of the completion of studies. Under certain conditions, the waiting period can be reduced to 26 weeks and the age limit can be extended to 28 years.
If you have an accident at work or on the way to or from work, you must inform your employer immediately and notify the doctor or hospital that you have had an accident. Where applicable, it is preferable to immediately report any accident to the health and safety delegate that you have had an accident.
The employer must complete and sign the Work/Travel Accident Report and report the accident to the Accident Insurance Association (Association d’assurance accident – AAA).
In order to receive benefits such as a monetary allowance or compensation, the accident must be recognized by the AAA. To be recognized, it must have occurred in the course of the professional activity, during the execution of the work contract, and result in bodily injury and/or damage to the vehicle. The travel accident must have occurred on the employee’s usual or direct route and must not have been caused by gross negligence.
If the accident has been recognized, you may claim, within one year, compensation for damages to motor vehicles, for incidental damages to property (damaged clothing or personal items), for damages to dental crowns, prostheses, orthoses or epitheses. If you are totally unable to work or if the right to sickness benefits expires, you are entitled to the payment of a full annuity. A partial annuity is granted in case of partial incapacity to work with loss of income. If you have to face an external job redeployment, you are entitled to a waiting pension. If you are partially unable to work due to the consequences of the accident (physiological impairment, impairment of well-being, disfigurement or similar), you may under certain conditions apply for a compensation for non-patrimonial damages.
If an employee dies as a result of a recognized accident, his or her legal successors may, within 3 years of the death, apply to the AAA for a survivor’s pension and/or compensation for non-pecuniary damages.
In case of problems with the AAA, please contact the Information, Advice and Assistance Service of the OGBL.
Attention: in case of a decision with which you do not agree, the time limit for opposition is 40 calendar days.
By working time is meant the time during which an employee is at the disposal of his or her employer. The legal working hours are set at 8 hours per day and 40 hours per week.
This duration cannot, in principle, be exceeded. However, the law provides for the possibility of introducing a reference period of up to 4 months and/or a sliding timetable. Since the terms and conditions may vary considerably, please contact one of our agencies.
A break is mandatory after six hours of work. As the law does not speak of a paid break, the payment of the break has been negotiated in many collective agreements by the OGBL.
Overtime can be compensated for by paid time off or, if applicable, by a transfer to a time-savings account (compte épargne-temps) at the rate of 1.5 hours per overtime hour. Employees can be paid a supplement of 40%. Young people under 18 years of age receive a 100% supplement. However, the provision of overtime by young people is permitted only under restrictive conditions and only if the employer cannot use an adult employee.
The law prohibits the employment of employees on Sundays and public holidays; however, there are a few exceptions are allowed. A supplement of 70% is due for work performed on a Sunday by an adult employee; youth under 18 years of age are entitled to a 100% supplement. Working on a public holiday is to be remunerated with a 100% supplement.
In companies where night work (10:00 p.m. – 6:00 a.m.) is customary, a supplement is only due if the company has a collective bargaining agreement. The minimum supplement is then set at 15%.
All the rates listed above may be increased by collective agreement.
Only night work in the HoReCa sector (on-trade sector) is regulated by law. In this case, each hour of night work between 1:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. is increased by 25%, either in free time, or in cash.
The provisions of collective agreements often regulate working hours better than the law requires, please contact the OGBL professional union responsible for your company or sector for more information.
There is currently no legal right to disconnection. In order to protect employees who use communication technologies in the digital age and to achieve a positive balance between private life and work, the OGBL demands the right to not have to be available 24 hours a day. However, certain provisions of the Labor Code can already be used as protective measures. The legal daily and weekly maximum working hours must not be exceeded, daily and weekly rest periods must be respected, and you do not need to be at the disposal of your employer in case of absence due to illness or during leave. In addition, the employer is obliged to guarantee the safety and health (physical and psychological) of his employees.
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